FPA objectives and principles

FPA Objectives

The Framework Partnership Agreement identifies the general rights and obligations of the Parties. It also defines the rights and obligations of the Parties when they enter into a Specific Grant Agreement and specifies the rules governing Union-funded humanitarian aid actions.

The objective of the FPA is to promote a quality partnership, based on professionalism, diversity, capacity to respond to humanitarian needs, adherence to agreed rules and standards, and a commitment to improve the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Furthermore, the FPA aims to promote the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of the aid, so as to ensure that Union-funded humanitarian aid actions are implemented in the most appropriate, rapid, efficient and effective manner, and that they attain their set results.

FPA Principles

The principles governing the implementation of the Framework Partnership Agreement are:

Ownership of Humanitarian aid actions: the Partners preserve their freedom and independence and assume all the responsibilities for the implementation of the actions.

Quality partnership: both parties undertake to jointly develop a partnership based on:

Transparency and accountability towards all stakeholders, including the beneficiaries of aid. To this end, and as a complement to legal and statutory provisions, the Parties are expected to adhere to voluntary codes of good practices;

Strategies and initiatives to increase the effectiveness of Union-funded humanitarian aid, for instance by supporting international coordination mechanisms for humanitarian response;

Provision of fair working conditions for humanitarian workers, volunteers or salaried, with special attention to their safety in the field and, to the extent possible, to their professional development;

Coherence with the Union policy approach in support of humanitarian actions including the Commission’s standards and guidelines, notably for sectoral and thematic issues;

Promotion of a learning culture based on the evaluation of actions and on sharing and disseminating best practices and lessons learnt; and

Promotion of awareness and understanding of humanitarian issues and values among decision-makers and the general public in order to foster the overall legitimacy and effectiveness of humanitarian assistance.